A merry crowd gathered in the garden of Jörg Pfützner’s home, for an evening of wine and food, including Bruwer Raats, David Clarke, Harry Haddon, Roland Peens, Greg Sherwood, Justin Knock and a few others. We came in good cheer, many armed with smart bottles.

Proceedings kicked off with a glass of Egon Müller’s Scharzhofberg Kabinett [...]

Just on my way home from the Douro, so only time to post a few more pictures. Yesterday was Vallado, then Vale Meao, then Niepoort’s Quinta do Napoles, and overnight at Vale Dona Maria. So much to take in. A lot to write about.

I’m busy filming in the Douro this weekend. It’s harvest time and looking as beautiful as ever. Just time to post a few pictures from yesterday at Quinta do Crasto, and then it’s time to drive to Vale Meao (we stayed overnight in the lovely hotel at Vallado).

Thoroughly enjoyed the Dirty Dozen tasting today. It’s the start of term for us wine writers this week. We’re back in the tasting and travelling season. Tomorrow is the Bunch tasting, which will also be really good, and then on Friday I am off to the Douro for the weekend.

For anyone like me who has been to the Douro a number of times, this is a brilliantly useful map. If you travel around the region by road, it’s really easy to be disoriented. Travelling by river is [...]

Old wines? I love them. And some of the best old wines are fortified wines: Madeira, Vintage Port, Tawny Port and VORS Sherry.

This is a 60 year old single-vintage Tawny Port (the official name for vintage dated Tawnies is Colheita), released to commerate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. It’s fabulous and expensive, but good value when [...]